How New York lawmakers are a step closer to getting Trump's taxes

Assemblyman David Buchwald, D-White Plains, and Sen. Brad Hoylman, D-Manhattan, have legislation in New York that would make the state tax department release President Donald Trump's taxes. They spoke during a news conference on Monday, April 8, 2019, at the state Capitol.
Joseph Spector, Albany Bureau Chief

ALBANY - The state Senate on Wednesday passed legislation that would allow the state Tax Department to release a president's state tax returns if any of three congressional committees asks for them.

Sen. Brad Hoylman, D-Manhattan, introduced the measure last month in a bid to aid Democrats who control the U.S. House in their efforts to obtain President Donald Trump's tax returns. It passed along party lines, 39-21.

Because Trump is a New Yorker, the state Legislature "has a special role and responsibility to assist Congress in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities," Hoylman said Tuesday after the bill passed a Senate committee.

He added Wednesday, "Simply put, no one is above the law, and we have a situation in Washington where a co-equal branch of government has requested tax information from the White House and it is being stonewalled."

It would allow New York to prosecute Trump associates even if they are pardoned by the president on the federal level.

What happens next?

With the Senate approval, the bills now go to the Democrat-led Assembly, where leaders haven't indicated whether it would pass them.

Then they would need the signature of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who, despite being a harsh Trump critic, has indicated he would back the proposal to let the state release Trump's taxes to Congress if it would apply to more than just the president.

Sen. Brad Hoylman is pressing for a law to make President Donald Trump's taxes public.(Photo: Hans Pennink, AP)

Since Trump files his taxes in New York, the bill would allow three congressional committees — the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Finance Committee and the Joint Committee on Taxation — to request the state Department of Taxation and Finance to provide the president's state tax returns.

House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler praised New York's bill, saying it would aid his investigation into the White House.

“This bill is a workaround to a White House that continues to obstruct and stonewall the legitimate oversight work of Congress," he said in a statement.

Republicans ripped both the tax bill and the so-called "double jeopardy" bill, saying they are politically motivated and set dangerous precedents.

"I truly believe that this is pure and simple a political maneuver to attack a sitting president of the United States to score political points in your individual districts," Sen. Thomas O'Mara, R-Big Flats, Chemung County, said on the Senate floor.

The "double jeopardy" bill would let state prosecutors bring charges — even if a presidential pardon was issued. Attorney General Letitia James, a Trump critic, has pushed for the measure.

Changing the law

Attorney General Tish James discusses her support for a bill that would allow New York to pursue criminal charges against those who receive a presidential pardon.
Joseph Spector, Albany Bureau Chief

Under New York law, sharing state tax return information is prohibited, except under rare circumstances. The bill would create an exemption when the returns are sought by congressional committees in any investigations.

Democrats dismissed Republicans' concerns that it would open all New Yorkers to tax scrutiny by Congress, saying the measure is limited in scope and the IRS already has access to state tax returns.

The bill is one of three Hoylman has introduced to get at Trump's taxes.

Another would keep Trump off the state's 2020 ballot if he doesn't release his taxes.

Hoylman said the Senate focused on the tax bill passed Wednesday because it appears to be more urgent, since Trump is fighting with the House over release of his taxes to the congressional committees.

Scrutinizing Trump's taxes

Real estate developers in the 1980’s & 1990’s, more than 30 years ago, were entitled to massive write offs and depreciation which would, if one was actively building, show losses and tax losses in almost all cases. Much was non monetary. Sometimes considered “tax shelter,” ......

The bill's passage in the Senate came a day after The New York Times reported on details of Trump's tax returns from 1985 through 1994, saying he lost more than $1 billion through his business dealings over that span.

"Real estate developers in the 1980’s & 1990’s, more than 30 years ago, were entitled to massive write offs and depreciation which would, if one was actively building, show losses and tax losses in almost all cases," Trump tweeted early Wednesday.